Dying Embers and Enduring Sparks
by cabbageoriley
Summary: Part 3 of my series! mpreg, miscarriage, don't hate me, triggers? *everything works out in the end* Stiles is expecting, but things might not go according to plan.
1. Say

The words ring in Stile's ears. Did she really just say that?

"Daddy?" Little Laura looks up at him. "Daddy, don't wolf out on me. I didn't mean to say anything wrong."

Stiles snaps out of his thoughts. "Oh, oh no, honey. You didn't say anything wrong." He hugs her and squeezes her tight. "How does Daddy smell different?"

"Just different. When the bad guy shot Grandpa in the leg, we were in the hospital."

"Yeah, I remember." Of course he remembers. That was a horrible day, a horrible week. The bullet didn't do much damage, but just seeing his dad like that…

"… Like her."

"What?"

"Daddy, you're not listening." She huffs just like her dad.

"I'm listening. I'm listening."

"The lady! The nurse with the big belly. You smell like her."

Stiles' face turns red. He knew that's what she was talking about, but hearing her say it out loud makes it real. Come to think of it, he had felt a little off lately, but when isn't he a little off? Is Derek going to be happy? Is it going to be as freaking painful as last time?

"Oh wow."

"Daddy, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, sweetheart." He kisses her forehead. "Promise me something. Don't tell anyone that I smell different, okay?"

"I promise I won't, Daddy." She looks at him with her big brown eyes and holds out her pinky finger. Stiles shakes it with his own.

"Go pick up your toys," he says as he gently swats her on the back, "or Aunt Lydia won't take you shopping." Laura runs up to her room with all the gracefulness of a penguin on ice skates. Stiles grins and blushes, finally realizing what he looks like when he runs around. He catches himself with his hand resting on his stomach. He swallows hard and walks into the living room. He doesn't know whether to be happy or horrified. He has wanted another child for two years, but now that it's happening… Now that it's happening, he feels really nervous.

He waits a couple days to tell anybody just in case it was all a mistake, but by Thursday he knows it's true. Really, he's surprised no one said anything about it. His scent is clearly different. Surely, Derek has noticed the change. Maybe they're all just used to it from last time.

Stiles decides to wait until the next night to announce the exciting news. Yes, he's finally decided that it is exciting news. How could it not be? The Hale house will have a new pup again.

They're having a welcome home/ Happy Anniversary party for Scott and Allison. Everyone will be there. The McCalls have been on a second honeymoon for the past three weeks. The whole pack chipped in to make it happen. An all expense paid trip to Hawaii. They wanted their fifth anniversary to be better than their first honeymoon. Really, they had no idea that secluded cabin had been on another pack's territory. Let's just say, it all ended well… eventually.

Stiles still isn't quite sure why they're having a party, though. Why should they celebrate Scott and Allison being together for five years? He's put up with him for much longer than that and never got a party for it. Not even a cake. Oh well, he's just happy to get to see his friend again.

All his plans go down the drain as soon as the pair walks through the door. He smells it on her instantly. Looks like there will be two new members to the pack in a little less than nine months.

Stiles pushes his feelings aside, after all that's what he does best, and joins the pack in congratulating them.


	2. Green-eyed Monster

That night, after tucking Laura in, Stiles goes back to the master bedroom. Derek's sitting on the bed with a big smile across his face.

"What are you so happy about?" Stiles eyes him.

"We're finally getting a new member in the pack."

Stiles turns around to sit down on his side of the bed. "Yay." His wolf is howling for attention.

"Are you jealous?" Derek grins.

"No, I'm not jealous!" Stiles huffs as he lies down and jerks the covers up around his neck. Really, there's no reason for him to be jealous. He's pregnant as well, but everyone is so happy for her, and he wants them to be happy for him, too.

"Yeah, you're not jealous at all."

"Not in the slightest."

"I can smell it on you."

Stiles stiffens his body as Derek touches him. "Really, you can smell that?"

"What's wrong with you?" Derek huffily lies down and jerks the covers over onto his side of the bed. Stiles growls and rips the covers back over. He is silent for a moment before he turns to look at the back of Derek's head.

"Do you…" He sighs and starts to roll back over.

"Do I what?"

"Do you want more pups? Of your own, I mean." There's a twinkle of hope in Stiles' eyes. Hope that he'll get to make his mate happy. Hope that Derek will realize what's going on.

"No."

Wait, what? "No?" Stiles' heart sinks.

"No, not really. I mean, an alpha always wants to build the pack, but Laura's good. I don't need any more."

"Oh." Stiles tries to suppress his urge to cry. Great, the hormones are kicking in already.

"Why?"

"No reason."

Derek rolls over and looks at Stiles. "You okay? You're jealous of Scott and Allison. Why? Do… do you want more?"

"Maybe."

"I didn't think you'd want any more, with all the wolf stuff and all. That's why I'm fine with just one. I thought you wouldn't want to go through it again."

Stiles is relieved. He smiles and starts to speak, but Derek cuts him off.

"Let's wait until Allison has had her pup though." Derek kisses his forehead. Stiles furrows his brows.

"Why? Why should we wait?"

"Well, we're the alphas. Everyone will focus their attention on the alpha's pup instead of a beta's. It's not fair to Allison. This is her first. We've already been the center of attention with Laura."

"But we're not really wolves, Derek. We can make our own choices of who to pay more attention to."

"It's how it works. They can't help it. Let's just wait, ok?"

"Ok." They kiss and lie back down together. Derek wraps around his mate, and Stiles begins to think. This is just great. It isn't fair to steal all the attention away from Allison. If the pack hasn't smelled it on him yet, maybe they still won't. He'll keep it a secret for a little bit longer. That way, Allison can at least have a few weeks in the spotlight.


	3. Allies

Stiles runs to the bathroom and slams the door shut. He leans over the toilet as he fumbles to turn the shower on to cover up the noise. Soon, Lydia is pounding on the door.

"Hurry up, Stiles!"

Jackson comes up to see what's going on. "What are you doing?"

"Allison's in the bathroom downstairs, and Stiles is hogging this one."

"Stiles, man, hurry up! Lydia needs to make herself look pretty!"

Lydia squeaks and hits him with her makeup bag. "I'm already pretty."

"Stiles, come on." Jackson focus on hearing inside the room. He can hear coughing. "You okay?!"

"Just give me a minute."

Lydia hears Allison exit the bathroom downstairs so she leaves. Jackson waits until Stiles opens the door.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Stiles slides past him and shuffles off to the master bedroom.

As the week goes on, the morning sickness gets worse. It's starting earlier this time. Stiles tries his best to make excuses to be at his dad's early in the mornings. He knows his excuses are pretty lame, but so far no one has mentioned anything about it. They're all too focused on Allison. His wolf is howling inside him, begging for the same attention, but he wants Allison to be happy so he keeps making excuses.

Stiles walks with his dad to the front door. He stops dead in his tracks. The air seems to crackle and his toes begin to burn.

"You leaving?" his dad asks.

"I think I left my keys on the table. Go ahead. I'll go get them and see you later." Stiles smiles.

His dad leaves, and Stiles immediately calls Derek. "I'm stuck at my dad's house."

"What do you mean 'stuck'?"

"'Stuck', like, there's mountain ash crap encircling the whole house."

"We'll be right there."

"No! Derek, this is clearly a trap."

"What do we do then?!" By the tone of his voice, the whole pack knows something is wrong and listens in.

"I'll think of something. Just, okay, listen…"

Stiles hangs up and soon senses the presence of someone watching him. He ducks, but it's too little too late. He tries to muffle his howl of pain. Looking down, he sees a smoking arrow jutting from his abdomen. Tears immediately come to his eyes. This can't be good. He whines as he lifts himself up and drags his useless body to where his phone landed. He dials a number and clenches his teeth against the pain.

"Hey, do you think I could ask for a favor?"

…

Chris Argent always secretly kind of liked the Stilinski kid. He was strong, bold, opinionated, smart, and clever. He was everything a great hunter should be, but his loyalties were with the creatures- those filthy creatures that had been his family's curse for centuries.

And now his own daughter was one of them. He had broken contact with her the moment she graduated high school- hadn't heard from her or any of Hale's pack since.

When he had received that phone call from Stiles, he wasn't sure what he should do. The attackers weren't from his family. No, they had moved on quite some time ago. He was the only one who had stayed behind. Stayed to make sure his only daughter would be safe. Stayed so he could always be near his beloved wife.

Now, he wasn't sure what he should do. Why should he get involved? Stiles. Darn in, he liked the kid.

He had staked out the place for a while, waiting to see a way to get in. He climbed in through a second story window and was now cautiously making his way down the stairs. The sound of soft whimpering gets louder and louder. He army crawls to Stiles' sprawled out body. The arrow's in deep, almost poking through the other side.

"Hold on," Chris says as he grips the metal.

"No," Stiles weakly reaches to stop him. Chris isn't stupid. He has made copies of all the Hale family books. He quickly guesses what's going on- what chapter this story comes from.

"Stilinski, it's straight through your stomach. It's…"

Stiles stops him. "I know, just… not yet. Please." Speaking takes all the energy he has left. "The pack… they're waiting down the street. Get me to them and you can go." Stiles gasps in air and groans because it pulls at the wound.

Chris gently puts his arms under the young man's body. "One, two…" Stiles groans from deep within his being. Argent cautiously exits the house. He can feel the boy's blood soaking through his shirt. Stiles is in no way capable of preventing the whimpers from leaving his throat.

"Shhh," Chris cautions just as an arrow rips through is arm.


	4. Pain

Chris tries not to drop Stiles, but the grip in his left arm is nonexistent. He tries to ease him to the ground, but Stiles still shrieks at the jolt.

"I will be right back." He looks Stiles in the eyes as he states his promise. He runs the rest of the way to the end of the street, ripping the arrow out as he goes. He skids to a stop by a fence.

"HALE!"

The pack looks up as they hear the yell.

"Dad?" Allison whispers. They can smell Stiles' blood on him. Scott growls, but Argent ignores him.

"Derek, come on!" Chris motions for Derek to follow. Derek isn't sure of what to do. He has hated the Argents since he was sixteen, but he knows Stiles is in trouble. He wants to trust him, but he knows that he doesn't deserve any trust. Finally, he darts across the road and follows him back down the tree lined alley.

When he sees his mate, he charges ahead of Argent and kneels to him. He doesn't know what to do. Derek whispers his name. Then, he hears the click of a gun.

Of course. He knew he shouldn't have trusted Argent. Chris must have planned this all along. Get both alphas together and kill them in one fell swoop. Derek growls, but Stiles weakly puts his hand on his knee.

"He's helping…"

"I'll hold them off as long as I can. Get him to Deaton as fast as you can." Chris slinks back to the Stilinski house.

Derek picks his mate up in his arms. Stiles wants to curl into him, but the arrow is impeding his movement.

"Derek, it hurts so bad." Derek kisses his forehead as he runs. Soon they're back to the pack. Lydia stifles a scream.

"Stiles!" yells Scott.

"There's so much blood" Jackson mouths as the color drains from his face.

"Open the door," Derek orders. They load him into the Camaro. It's tight, but they get him in. "Boyd, Isaac, Erica, go back to the house. Forget about Argent, but, the others… kill them." The betas charge off into the night.


	5. The Secret

The sterile work room in the vet's office is soon flooded with commotion. Derek gently eases Stiles onto the metal table. Stiles whimpers uncontrollably. The once red blood is now as black as coal.

Deaton rummages through his cabinets, handing Jackson the tools and herbs he'll need. He goes to Stiles and feels around the wound.

"Please… don't…" Stiles is too weak to finish with 'don't let me lose my baby'.

"He's trying to help, Stiles" Scott tries to calm him down.

"No… don't…" Stiles knows that none of them understand. He hasn't told anyone yet. If he had any energy left, he'd be writhing in pain, but all he can do is weakly lift his head up from the table and let it drop back down. He's going to die and none of them will ever know that he was pregnant. He's going to die and… Laura. Where's Laura? The whole pack had come and…

"Laura…" Stiles moans as Deaton presses against his back. The tip of the arrow is already almost through.

"She's with Scott's mom." Allison says through her tears.

"The tip's barbed. It will rip him apart if we pull it out." Deaton moves Stiles closer to the edge of the table. "Hold him." The males hold him down to the table.

"No… no, no, no, no, no, no, no…" Stiles begs them. He knows he's going to lose the pup, but once they move the arrow it's over. It's final. Deaton grabs the arrow and pushes all his weight down on it. Stiles screams as the arrow rips out his back. Allison and Lydia turn away from the scene.

"Derek, break the arrow in half and pull your end out." Derek obeys, and Deaton pulls the other half out. Stiles can't stop the tears from flooding down his face. Dr. Deaton opens the wound as wide as he can and begins to work his "magic".

The vet leaves the room when the front door opens. The pack can see the wound slowly start to heal. Stiles has his eyes closed, but he's still moaning loudly. Derek is wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Deaton comes in and out of the room multiple times getting different supplies and throwing things away. The noise doesn't bother Stiles at all; he is too worn out to notice anything happening around him.

After a little while longer, Deaton steps back into the room.

"Take these for the pain," he says. The group looks up and sees Chris Argent standing in the doorway. He takes the pills from the vet and sheepishly looks at the group. He shifts a bit, inching closer to the door. He looks at Deaton, feeling he'll get more of an answer from him than a pack of angry wolves.

"Are they okay?"

Deaton sighs. "The outer wound is healing, but…"

The pack looks at the two men strangely.

"They?" Derek asks, his heart sinking even farther as he realizes the word's implication.

"You didn't know?" Deaton closes his eyes and breathes deeply before speaking. "I'm sorry. I assumed…"

Derek's legs give out, and he sinks to the floor. "How far along?"

"About the same as Allison; three weeks or so." Chris looks at his daughter and takes a sharp breath. He nods at her and turns to leave.

"Dad!" Allison calls. He turns around. She walks to him and wraps her arms around him, watching that she doesn't squeeze his arm too tight. They go into other room to talk.


	6. Carry on

Derek slowly raises his head and looks at Jackson. "Go to the Sheriff's house and get rid of the blood."

Chris interrupts as he walks back into the room. "Your other betas are already working on it."

Derek nods. He looks at Chris, trying to figure out why the man suddenly seems like a normal human being.

"He'll rest better at home," Deaton quietly speaks to the group. "He'll be weak and tired for a while so just let him sleep. There's nothing more I can do right now, but if something happens call me, and I'll be there."

"Thank you," Derek says before lifting Stiles up into his arms. The movement startles him, and he whines. "It's okay," Derek whispers lovingly. Hearing his mate's voice calms Stiles down.

"Derek?" he weakly mutters. "Is…"

"Shhh. Just rest." Derek holds him close and walks out to the car. The smell of blood reminds him of how close Stiles was to dying. He props him up in the front seat and gets in the driver's side.

He pulls up to the entrance and rolls down his window. "Chris, can you bring my pack back to my house?"

Chris nods. The betas look at each other in confusion but climb into the vehicle anyway.

Derek gets to the Hale house first and tucks Stiles into bed. He is almost out of the door when he hears Stiles' voice.

"Derek… I was…" Stiles stops and squeezes his eyes shut and moans.

"What's wrong?" He's back to the bed in an instant.

"It hurts." Stiles starts to cry. "I don't want to lose it, Derek…"

"You won't." Derek doesn't know what to do. He doesn't know how to try to comfort his mate. How can you tell someone who is losing their baby that everything will be okay? You can't. Their world is crumbling, and you're helpless to stop it.

Derek is standing on the porch when Argent gets there. The betas hurry into the house so the two men can talk.

"I don't know why Stiles trusted you." He stands intimidating at his full height, but Chris refuses to flinch. "But, I trust Stiles. He must see something in you that I can't see yet." The 'yet' sounds hopeful to Chris' ears, and he doesn't know why he is pleased by that. "You're welcome here anytime I'm here. You may even develop a relationship with your daughter, who knows?" Derek turns to leave.

Chris takes a step forward, and Derek turns around to watch him. He steps back but says what he intended to say anyway.

"I'm sorry I couldn't have done more to help."

Derek furrows his brows, nods, and enters his house. He can smell the blood as soon as he opens the door. Rushing up the stairs, he can see the betas in the hallway by the master bedroom. Allison is bawling her eyes out and wrapping her arms around her stomach. Scott and Lydia are the only two in the room itself. They're trying to calm Stiles down. He is doubled up in pain and screaming as he cries. He's hyperventilating and choking on his tears.

"Stiles, calm down. Please, calm down." He kneels by the bed near where Stiles is laying. Derek can't help but start to cry when Stiles' eyes focus on him.

"I'm sorry." He gasps trying to get air into his lungs. "I'm sorry, Derek. Sorry…."

"Stiles, it's not your fault. It will be okay."

"Ow, ow, ow." His whole body shakes as the wave of pain overtakes him. "It…it was a surprise…" Derek's eyes close and tears fall onto the comforter. Why is this happening? Stiles doesn't deserve to go through this. "I… I was going to tell you, but then Allison was so happy…" Stiles let's out an inhuman howl of pain and curls in on himself further. "Ohhh, it hurts Derek!"

"Someone call Deaton!" Derek shouts.

"He's already on his way" Lydia replies as she paces around the room.

"Why does it hurt so bad?" Stiles is trembling. "I'm… I'm not that far along and… OW!" He reaches for his mate's hand and squeezes it as tight as he can. Derek's bones crack, but he doesn't say anything; they'll heal.


	7. Change

Dr. Deaton arrives at the Hale house and concocts a mixture to knock Stiles out. The pain is just too much for him. After examining him, he looks at the group and states "He's healing now" and leaves. The pack is too worn out, both physically and emotionally, to ask any questions. Derek changes the linens and cleans Stiles up. He can feel his heart beginning to race; his wolf is fighting to the surface, so he leaves Lydia to watch over Stiles.

Derek storms downstairs and into the kitchen. He grabs onto the island and braces himself against it. He leans down onto it and grips it so forcefully his knuckles turn white. His body is shaking with rage. The granite snaps under the pressure and breaks off into his hand. He lifts it up and glares at it. With as much force as he can manage, he hurls the chunk of stone through the back glass door.

He is still shaking when he hears footsteps in the shattered glass. Looking up, he sees the Sheriff. Derek clears his throat and wipes his eyes.

"Scott called Melissa," Mr. Stilinski explains. Derek nods in reply. The Sheriff has been around Derek long enough now to be able to decipher his facial expressions. "Don't do anything stupid."

"I'm going to kill them."

"Do that and I'll arrest you. Think of Laura. Clam down and let it go."

"Let it go?!" Derek raises his brows and glares at him incredulously. "They tried to kill him and in the process killed our unborn child!"

"You have every reason to be mad…"

"I'm not mad. I'm furious, and I'm going to kill them." Derek moves toward the remnants of the door. Mr. Stilinski reaches out and places his hand on Derek's shoulder.

At the touch, Derek breaks. He can't stop the tears. Crying is weak and pathetic. Crying gets you nowhere, but… This is his mate. They messed with his family.

"No one messes with my family." Derek pulls away and exits the house. The Sheriff watches him as his form fades into the darkness.

Mr. Stilinski slowly ascends the stairs. He waves Lydia away from the door and enters the room. Stiles is sleeping fitfully. His whines and whimpers make the Sheriff's heart break. This is definitely a situation he never expected, but his son continues to surprise and shock him. He places a hand on his head to calm him.

"Shhh… Stiles, son, you're all right." His words only seem to bring tears to his son's eyes. His whines turn to sniffles and groans. "Shhh…" The Sheriff wishes there was something he could do. If his wife, Stiles' mom, was here, she'd know what to do. He thinks back to when Stiles was little. Back when he would fall and scrape his knees. He can see her sitting in their old wooden rocking chair; gently moving back and forth, back and forth. He can hear her humming and soothing her little boy. He wishes she were here now. Wishes there was some way he could take the pain away. But there's no bruise to kiss, no scrape to patch up. The ache will always be there, just under the surface, just out of comfort's reach.

"Dad?" Stiles is groggy and confused.

"I'm here, son."

The Sheriff slides into bed and sits against the headboard. He pulls Stiles up and wraps him in his arms. He does his best to hum along to his wife's favorite song. Stiles recognizes the melody. He can feel his son's tears as they hit against his arm and saturate the fabric of his sleeve. They stay like that for a long time, gentle humming and rocking back and forth, back and forth.


	8. Understanding

The Sheriff wakes up to the sound of his pager. There have been some more animal attacks during the night. He sighs and gently moves Stiles off of him. Once Stiles looks comfortable, he leaves. Entering the kitchen, he sees Derek. Dry blood covers his hands and is splattered over his clothes and face. Stilinski stands there and looks at him. He crosses his arms and pinches the bridge of his nose.

"Do what you have to do." Derek's face is expressionless. He moves to the hall bathroom to begin to wash off.

"Call me to fill me in when he wakes up." Stilinski lowers his head and leaves through the broken door. "And get this glass cleaned up."

Stiles wakes up an hour later. Derek can tell that he's awake, but Stiles doesn't move. Thirty minutes later he still hasn't moved or said a word.

"Stiles, I know you're awake." Derek watches him, hoping he'll move or at least acknowledge that he heard him.

"Go away."

Derek gets up from the chair and walks over to Stiles. He sits on the bed and can tell that Stiles' eyes are wet. He reaches out to him, and Stiles jerks away.

"Please don't. Just, go away." Stiles buries his face into the pillow and waits for his mate to leave. But, he doesn't. "Leave Derek!"

"No. I'm not leaving you. You need me."

Stiles sits up. There are tears in his eyes. He is trying to act angry, but Derek can smell it, the overwhelming sadness. "Leave me alone!"

"No! This is what you always do. You get hurt and you keep it all inside. Everything builds and builds and you just keep holding it in. It's killing you, Stiles! I don't want to keep watching you die."

"I'm not dying, Derek."

"Yes, you are. You're drowning, and you won't let me pull you out of the water. I'm right here. My hand is right there, and you're too stubborn to take it."

Stiles just stares at him like he's speaking a foreign language, like he's speaking a foreign language and he can't comprehend. But he knows, both of them know, Stiles is the one who taught Derek how to speak that language in the first place. Stiles is the only reason Derek is the open and loving person he is today. He helped him get to that point. Derek can see that Stiles is at the point where he used to be; when he thought that no one cared or could be trusted; before he gained a pack and a family.

"Go away, Derek. Leave me alone." Stiles flops back down and jerks the blanket over his head. Derek sighs and walks out of the room. He sits down just outside the door and listens to Stiles cry.


	9. Drifting

Stiles can't hear Derek's heartbeat as clearly anymore. He's somewhere downstairs. Stiles sighs and sits up in bed. His eyes are red and swollen. He pulls the blanket up around him and over his head, so he looks like a marshmallow with a puffy red face. He should really try to stand up, but he feels too weak. His whole body aches! His back feels like he's been struck with a baseball bat and his stomach… His stomach feels like he's been shot with a wolfs bane arrow…

He sits there on the bed in a daze for the next hour. His eyes focus on nothing at all. Stiles just sits there and tries to keep breathing. At three o'clock he finally gives in and stands up. The wood floors feel cold against his feet. He slowly drags himself over to his laptop and turns it on. At midnight, the screen's glow continues to light up the room. The eerie blue glow makes Stiles' eyes look even more blank and hollow.

Stiles reads and reads. Even though he's a guy and a werewolf, most things about miscarriage still apply. He reads everything. He absorbs it all into his knowledge bank and stores it away. Maybe if he learns everything that's out there he'll be able to forget how much his heart hurts.

He stands and walks around the room like an apparition. He haunts the dark room. Stiles feels weightless, like he's not even real. It's as if he would float away into nothingness if his heart weren't weighing him down. He wishes he would just disappear. It would be so much easier if he hadn't called Chris. He wishes now that he had just laid there. Let all the blood seep out of his body. Give into the blackness.

If he had… if he had died, it would have killed his dad. Walking in and finding him, he would have had a heart attack. Then, Derek would have come in and found the both of them. It would have killed him, too. He would be alone again, and he would have completely given up. And Laura, his precious girl… Ok, so maybe Stiles is happy he didn't die, but that still doesn't help with the pain of losing his child.

Even with all his research he doesn't feel any better. At about two a.m. he shuffles back over to the bed and lies down. He sees the arrow and the blood every time he closes his eyes. It's horrible. Now he'll associate his dad's dining room floor with losing his child for the rest of his life. Perfect.

He finally drifts off to sleep when the clock nears four thirty. It's not a sound sleep, and he wakes up in a panic multiple times. He keeps looking for Derek beside him, but he isn't there. He's finally giving him the space he had asked for. It's lonely in the bedroom all by himself, but, honestly, he could be surrounded by a hundred people and still feel completely alone right now.

He groans and sits up in bed. Miserable. Yeah, miserable is definitely the best word to describe him right now. Once again, he stands up. He doesn't move for a while, just stands there. He walks over to the window and peers out into the night, err, morning. He sits down in front of the window and rests his head on the glass. Tired and emotionally beaten, he allows himself cry once again.


	10. Forgetting

The house is too quiet. It's too much like it used to be back before Derek formed his new pack. When it's quiet, the ghosts come back. Sitting alone in the library, Derek can feel them. The sensation gives him goose bumps. He can hear the hollow echoes of laughter. The sounds of happiness haunts him yet again. He feels as if he has lost everything even though his new pack is still very much alive. It's driving him nuts.

It all happened two days ago. The memories are still fresh. Everyone is still in shock. That first night and day everyone stayed at the house. They were all together, even though Stiles had locked himself in the bedroom. Today, well, Stiles is still held up in his room, but the house is empty. Everyone has gone back to their jobs, gone back to their lives.

Derek sits in the library, right next to the master bedroom, and tries not to go insane. He tries not to focus on the ghosts in his mind. He focuses on the sound of his mate's steady breathing, his strong heartbeat. By two o'clock the silence is too much. He stands and leaves the room.

He knocks on the bedroom door. "Stiles." No answer. "Stiles, you do realize I could break this door down if I wanted to." He sighs and rests his forehead against the door. "I know this is hard on you. It's hard on me, too. It's hard on everyone else, especially Allison." He can hear Stiles' breath hitch in a small gasp. Maybe mentioning her wasn't the best thing to do. "Ok, Stiles. I'm going to pick up Laura from school. When I get back, I'll make a pizza or something. The pack will be back soon, too, unless you… Just… I'll be back." Derek turns to leave but stops when he hears Stile's voice for the first time in twenty hours. "I love you, too."

Derek gets back half an hour later. He sits in the car for a minute and looks at Laura.

"Daddy doesn't feel well so he might stay in the bedroom for a while."

"Ok."

"He may not act like he usually does, but he still loves you, ok?"

"Ok, Dad."

"Watch what you say, too. Don't say anything about his scent, or babies, or Allison. Understand?"

"Yes, Dad."

The peck on Derek's window almost makes him jump out of his skin. His eyes involuntarily flash red. Laura just jumps out of the car and runs to hug her daddy. Stiles bends down to hug her.

Giggling she says, "You scared him."

"Yes, I did. Big bad wolf's not so scary when he's afraid, is he?"

"Nope." Her smile fades a little as she hugs him again. "I missed you, Daddy."

"Missed you, too. Now come on, you can help me finish supper." He takes her hand and they walk into the house.

Derek follows in behind them, completely taken back by Stiles' sudden change. He stands at the entrance of the kitchen and watches them.

"Pizza sounded awful, so I started spaghetti."

Derek carefully thinks of what to say. He's never been good with words, but now he has to make sure he says the right thing. He can't act like everything is fine, but he doesn't want to dwell on the accident if Stiles doesn't want to. Derek wanted Stiles to get up and keep going, but he wanted to talk about things first, to get Stiles to open up.

"Um, yeah, spaghetti's good, yeah." Why can't he form an actual sentence? Stiles walks over to him and takes his hands in his own.

"Derek, I'm fine." Stiles smiles even though his eyes start to glisten with tears again. "We'll talk tonight, okay?" With that, Stiles turns around and becomes his normal self again. It scares Derek to see how easily he can go from broken to whole. It's an act he has perfected after years and years of practice. Derek continues to watch as Laura helps Stiles pour the sauce over the spaghetti.

…

When Stiles comes back into the bedroom, Derek is watching him.

"You okay?" Derek looks concerned.

"Yeah. It's fairly normal I guess." Stiles lies back down and lets Derek wrap his arms around him.

"Please talk to me. You said you would last night."

"There's nothing to say. I was pregnant. I got shot. I lost it. It hurts, but I have to focus on what I have left."

"Stiles, you're still holding it in. Women who lose their babies grieve for weeks and months. You cried for a day. There's no way you can be over it."

"This is what you wanted."

"This is NOT what I wanted. I wanted you to talk to me. I wanted us to get through this together."

"We are getting through this together, Derek. I don't want to talk about it. I just want you to be with me, ok?" His voice cracks and he breathes deeply to keep from crying. Derek puts a hand on his cheek. "Ok, Derek? Just be here with me. Be here for me. Hug me and hold me and… and… let me forget."

"Stiles, I'll always be here for you. I'm here for whatever you need. I just don't know how to do it. I don't know how to deal with this."

Stiles starts to cry, and he buries his face into Derek's shoulder.

"I love you."

"I love you, too."


	11. Of Hearing and Being Heard

Usually hearing a baby's heart beat would be amazing, but, for Stiles, it is cruel and unusual punishment. When they first hear it, no one knows what to do. Awkward is an understatement. Of course Allison feels horrible. No one speaks. No one moves.

"Guys, you seriously need to stop. Celebrate already," Stiles says. He tries not to let his true feelings show. He doesn't want anyone to know how much it hurts him. It's not fair to Allison. She should feel happy, not guilty.

Stiles takes the opportunity to start fixing supper when it presents itself. He knows that he hasn't been completely himself lately. He hasn't smiled as much or laughed as much, but he hasn't felt like it. He knows that it's normal to feel emotionally drained, but he just wants it to all go away. He wants to feel normal again. Why does life have to be so hard?

He pretends that it doesn't bother him. It's fairly easy at first, but it gets harder. Much harder. All evening he hears it. All night he hears it. It keeps him awake. By morning, he is sleep deprived, jittery, and he feels sick. He tells himself that it's stupid. It's a heartbeat. It's just a heartbeat.

At breakfast he snaps. He can't take it anymore. He feels like he's been transported into Edgar Allen Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart". The heartbeat is pounding in his head, and, if he stays any longer, he'll go insane. He jumps up from his place at the island and darts out the door. Derek immediately jumps up and follows him. He finds him sitting by a fallen log with his legs curled up and hands clamped over his ears. He's shaking.

"Stiles."

"I'm not okay, Derek. I'm so not okay." Stiles is bawling. Derek sits beside him and holds him in his arms. Stiles cries until he can't cry anymore. "It's horrible, Der. I can't stop thinking about it, and, now with Allison, it's just a constant reminder. I think I'm going crazy."

"You're not going crazy." Derek kisses the top of Stiles' head which is resting against his chest. "It's normal to grieve and be in pain. But, we'll get through this." Derek's phone buzzes alerting him that Jackson and Lydia took Laura to school.

"Will you take the pack out away from the house? I need to talk to Allison."

"Yeah. Sure." Derek stands and wipes the leaves from his clothes. He helps Stiles up, and they walk back to the house.

Allison stands alone awkwardly in the living room. As soon as Stiles enters the house she starts talking.

"I am so sorry." She is about to cry.

"No. There's nothing to be sorry about. It's amazing, and I am so happy for you!" Stiles begins to weep. "It's not you, I swear. It's… it's not the baby either." He means it, too. He knows it's not Allison's fault. "It just hurts so much."

They hug each other and cry. Allison looks into his eyes as they pull apart. "I'm here if you need to talk. We all are." Stiles shakes his head violently 'no'.

"That's what nobody understands. I don't want to talk. Truthfully, what I'd really like to do is crawl into a closet, lock myself in, and sit there until we all forget about it, but I can't." He laughs, but it's hollow, as if he has actually considered doing just that. "I don't want to talk. Derek keeps bugging me to talk, but it's not going to help. I did research cuz that's what I do. That's what I'm good at. That's about the only thing I've ever been good at. What I'm feeling is normal. Guys deal with it differently than girls do. Most women want to talk about it. I'm a guy. I don't want to freaking talk about it! And… and it doesn't help anything that I can still smell it on me! You know, it can take up to two months for all the hormones to go away. Two freaking months that I have to smell a baby I'll never get to hold!"

Stiles gasps in air and lowers his head. He hates the feeling of tears in his eyes. It burns, and he hates it. He can feel it. In a few seconds he'll be deep in a panic attack. He doesn't want to have a panic attack, to feel that weak. But, he's been feeling weak for a while now. He closes his eyes and tries to breathe. Arms close in around him, but not just Allison's. It's Derek and then Scott. He hears the whole pack hurrying back into the house and gathering around him.

This time he doesn't push them away. He lets them comfort him as he gasps and moans and occasionally screams. It suddenly hits him, this is what pack is for. These are his friends, this is his family. They're all there for him. There's no way they can possibly understand exactly how he's feeling, but they're there. It helps.


	12. Dinner for Two

Lydia and Jackson have taken Laura for the evening, so it is just Derek and Stiles having dinner at the Stilinski house tonight. It's nice for it to just be the four of them, but Stiles still thinks of his little girl throughout the night. Melissa has baked lasagna, and it is delicious.

"You like it, guys?" she asks as she finally sits down at the table. She insists on serving everyone else, so she is always the last one to get started with the meal. Stiles looks at her and shakes his head until he is able to swallow and reply.

"Yeah, it's great. Thanks for having us over."

"How's Laura?" the Sheriff asks just to keep a conversation going. Stiles hasn't been as talkative lately, and he misses the sound of his voice.

"She's good." He lowers his head back down and focuses intently on his plate. Derek stares at him, hoping he'll continue, but he doesn't. He clears his throat and picks up where Stiles left off.

"She's really good. Loves school. She can already read on her own."

"Impressive. Most kids her age can't read well on their own." Mr. Stilinski smiles and imagines how smart his granddaughter is.

"I wonder where she gets that from." Melissa reaches over and taps Stiles' hand. He looks at her and offers a sheepish smile.

"Hey," Derek speaks up, feigning shock and resentment, "I was quite the bookworm back when I was a kid."

"Really." The Sheriff acts as if he doesn't believe it. But, he does. He remembers seeing the burnt remains of book after book back at the Hale house fire. He had assumed it was a family library, but came to realize that it was actually a bedroom; Derek's bedroom.

The three of them continue talking for a while with Stiles adding something in every now and then. It's hard to talk with him there. He looks so tired and defeated. He looks miserable. They feel guilty to be sitting there laughing and enjoying themselves. But, Stiles will get better. It will just take some time.

A little more than half way through the meal Stiles freezes. He's not sure what it is at first, but it's something. He hears a faint, far off something… then two somethings. Two alternating somethings that sound quite a bit like heartbeats. He looks across the table at Melissa. She's smiling and enjoying herself. He looks to his right, at his dad, and immediately tries to get that image out of his head. Gross. She's too old to get pregnant anyway… right? But, if it's not her, then who…

He looks over at Derek who is staring at him like he's a unicorn or something. Stiles drops his fork, and it hits his plate with a sharp clang. Mr. Stilinski looks over at his son and sees that his eyes are as wide as saucers.

"What's wrong?" No one answers him. "Stiles? Derek? What's wrong?" He has no idea what's happening, and he really hopes it isn't some sort of crazy werewolf thing. He looks over at his wife. She has a worried look on her face as well.

Derek and Stiles are up and into each other's arms so fast that their chairs tumble over and bang against the floor. They clutch at each other as if they're holding on for dear life. Soon, they're sinking down to the floor together, still not letting go.

Mr. Stilinski can hear his son sobbing, but it sounds like a happy sob- if you can possibly describe a sob as being happy. Derek is crying too, but he's also smiling, so that's a good thing, right? This is definitely a werewolf thing. He and Melissa aren't exactly sure what to do about this situation. They cautiously stand and walk over to the pair of weeping wolves and kneel beside them.

"Stiles, is everything okay?" He lays a hand on his shoulder. "Is everything okay with the pack?"

His son looks over at him and nods his head. "Yeah, we just got two new members."

"Two new… what?" What's going on still doesn't dawn on him until he realizes Stiles has his hand resting on his stomach. He pulls Stiles into a hug and kisses his forehead. Melissa hugs Derek.

"This is real right? I'm not dreaming?" Stiles wipes the tears from his eyes.

"This is real, Stiles. You're not dreaming." Derek smiles and pulls him in for a kiss.


	13. Late Night Surprises

Stiles opens his eyes and blinks a few times, disoriented. He shifts his body and realizes he is lying on his dad's couch. His eyes feel puffy from crying. Sitting up, he rests his hand against his stomach. He listens carefully, making sure it's real. He grins as he hears the two distinct beats.

"Hey."

Stiles turns and sees a smiling Derek sitting in a chair near the couch. "Hey. What time is it?"

"10:30." He waits to finish speaking until Stiles is done yawning. "Last thing I remember, we were watching a movie. You fell asleep so the three of us just sat here and talked. I guess I feel asleep, too, and they went ahead to bed."

"Why didn't you wake me up when you woke up?" He leans back into the couch and stretches.

"You were exhausted. I couldn't bring myself to wake you up." Derek stands and grabs his jacket. "Come on, let's get home."

"Ok." Stiles stands up and kisses his husband. He can't help but grin. His cheeks are going to hurt in the morning, but it doesn't matter. Nothing matters anymore. He's going to have two new babies in eight months, and he couldn't be happier.

The pack is camped out in the living room watching TV when they hear Derek's car pull up. Scott immediately jumps up and pulls Laura to her feet. He hurries her through the room toward the stairs.

"Go, go, go. Hurry up, little missy! You were never here; you've been asleep for hours. Got it?"

"Got it, Uncle Scott." Laura giggles as he finally picks her up and runs her up the stairs. He puts her back down, and she runs to her bed and jumps in. She pulls her covers up around her.

"Good night, sleep tight." Scott whispers.

"Don't let the werewolves bite."

They flash their eyes at each other. Scott smiles as Laura giggles again. He hurries back to the stairs and jumps down them. Stiles and Derek are only now getting out of the car, so he's safe. That was a close call.

Everyone in the room turns toward the front of the house as they hear the wrong number of heartbeats.

"Are there other people with them?" Lydia asks. Everyone pushes their way to the window and fights for a spot to look out. The pack can see that Derek has Stiles pinned against the car door, his hands pushing down on Stiles' hips. Stiles is holding Derek's face in his hands, and they're kissing passionately.

They soon realize that the whole pack is watching them. How creepy is that? A little privacy would be nice every once and a while. Derek steps back and pulls Stiles along. They hold hands and romp up to the house. They kiss once more when they reach the porch. Derek stands behind Stiles and wraps his arms around his stomach. He kisses his neck and they open the door.

When they enter the house, everyone is standing and staring at them. The pack has noticed that all four heartbeats are now in the house. There's no one with their alphas. It's just them. Everyone is shocked. A mix of wow's, really's, and oh my's fill the air. Stiles simply smiles and says "surprise". The whole pack rushes around him. Lydia squeals, Allison bursts into tears, Jackson is a lot happier than he lets on, and Scott smiles that goofy little smile of his. It's amazing. The pack feels whole again.


	14. Doctor, tell me the news

Stiles bites down on his lip as Deaton begins the ultrasound.

"Does that hurt?" The vet asks, concerned.

"No, I'm just nervous. It's weird to have one of these." He blushes.

"I see."

"You let us believe he had miscarried," Derek growls.

"I believed he had miscarried. You never had any further contact with me, so there was no way for me to know either way. Trust me, if I had known they survived, I would have told you. The grief you experienced could have put unwanted stress on the twins." He doesn't need werewolf hearing to know that Stiles' heart starts to beat a little faster after hearing that information. "But it didn't. Don't worry, Stiles, everything looks good. There is absolutely nothing to worry about. It looks like everything healed up nicely inside and out."

Stiles sits up on the metal table. "Um, do you… do you think you could, um, maybe do this again… later. I never got to do it last time, you know, being a guy and all."

"Any time you want to have one; I'll be here." Deaton claps Stiles on the shoulder.

"Probably don't give werewolves ultrasounds often, do you?"

"More often that you'd think."


	15. IDK, my BFF Allison

It doesn't take long for Stiles' stomach to get bigger than Allison's. They compare themselves to each other every single day. Each day Derek takes a picture of Stiles, and each day Scott takes a picture of Allison. Then, Stiles and Allison pose for a picture together. The way they act together, you would think they had been best friends all their lives.

It's funny to see how close they are to each other. The pack will come home to find them sitting on the couch together, crying over a romantic comedy and eating pickles and ice cream. Or sometimes they can be found reading a baby book together. It's like they're attached at the hip.

When Allison goes shopping for baby clothes and nursery items, Stiles has to stay home. It's so unfair that society can't accept the fact that he is pregnant. He doesn't blame them, though. Most people don't know that werewolves exist and that some male werewolves can get pregnant. So, since he can't leave the Hale property, he has Allison send him pictures of everything, and he tells her what to buy for him.

He does quite a bit of online shopping, too. And, when the boxes are too big to fit in their P.O. Box (and every single box is too big), he has them delivered to his dad's house. It's not uncommon for the Sheriff to come home to a front porch completely filled with all shapes and sizes of brown boxes. There are so many boxes of things that sometimes he wonders if Derek will have to expand the house just to make it all fit.

When Derek sees the bill, he almost faints. Good thing he has plenty of money saved up. Stiles should really stop buying things, though. It's not like the inheritance will last forever. But, Derek doesn't have the heart to tell him to stop. Stiles has this gorgeous twinkle in his eyes every time he shows his husband what he has bought now. It reminds Derek of the way Laura looked when she was little and they took her to the toy store. So, the alpha just sighs, lets Stiles continue to buy things, and tries to keep a tab on the bank account.

Of course, Stiles isn't the only one buying things. Allison has purchased so many items that she could probably start her own baby store if she wanted to. Whenever she gets something new, she always shows it to Stiles first. They always 'aww' at all the baby clothes and little toys she has chosen. She found out that she is going to have a girl a couple months ago. She already has tons of frilly dresses and socks with lace on them. She couldn't be more excited.

Stiles hasn't had Deaton to confirm anything yet, but he's sure that both of his babies are boys. It will be exciting to have some of each, a girl and two boys. When one of the twins kicks, he knows immediately which one it is. One baby definitely takes after his father, so Stiles calls it baby D. His kicks are forceful, and they hurt quite a bit. Then, there's baby S. It's the baby that takes after himself. He's a trouble maker and purposely makes Baby D mad. Stiles knows to get ready for a war inside his abdomen when Baby S starts kicking even though it's always soft and playful at first. He says it is like the baby is taunting his brother, because soon Baby D starts kicking, and they both go at it full force. Stiles knows that when they're born the pack will have a new Derek and Stiles duo running around.

Pretty soon, Stiles and Allison start making scrapbooks. It's not very manly, he knows, but he likes doing it with her. She has more ultrasound pictures than him because she's gone to a doctor multiple times and he has only gone to Deaton once. But, once the babies come, it won't matter how many ultrasound pictures there are because the books will be filled with pictures of the babies themselves.

The two of them are sitting at the table with all their scrapbook supplies scattered around.

"I'm so excited," Allison beams.

"Me too."

"Hey, can I have the letters over there?" Allison takes the glittery pink letters when Stiles hands them to her.

"What's that page for?"

"It's the name page."

Stiles sits up a little straighter, clearly interested now. "You already have a name?"

"Yep."

"What is it?"

"I'm not telling."

"Oh come on Allison," Stiles whines. "You can trust me. I won't tell anyone else."

"No. It's going to be a surprise." She turns the scrapbook up so he can't see as she places the stickers on the page.

"You are so mean."

"I know." She grins as she closes the book and gets up to hide it away.


	16. Et tu, Lydia

Lydia insists on planning the baby showers again this time. They'll have a combined party because all the same people would come to both of them anyway. There's no reason to have two separate parties. She keeps everything hush-hush the entire time. Allison and Stiles have no idea what is in store for them. Stiles just hopes he doesn't go into labor during the festivities this time.

The pregnant duo are about to die from curiosity. It isn't fair; Lydia should at least give them a hint, but she won't. She constantly has a party planning book with her, and, when either of them tries to sneak a peek, she closes it and moves to another room. She also learns to make her phone calls elsewhere because both wolves have tried to listen in on her conversation.

"You'll find out soon enough," she keeps saying to them, but that doesn't stop them from wanting to know what she's planning. Lydia's a wonderful party planner, but Allison and Stiles (especially Stiles) just want to know what she's up to. It's like waiting for Christmas. It's torture.

So, when Stiles finds one of her books lying on the floor by the couch, he steals it. He rushes as fast as he can rush up to the library and locks the door behind him. He eagerly opens the book.

There are a lot of scribbles and notes on the pages. Lists and dates fill up every margin. Then he sees it, a whole section devoted to the theme of the party and what gifts are already purchased. He turns the page…

And it's in Latin.

Lydia laughs when she hears a 'NOOOOOO!' echoing down from upstairs.


	17. Pack

Scott kisses his wife lovingly. He rests his hand on her stomach and smiles.

"What does it feel like?"

"Wonderful." Allison grins as her husband rubs his face against her neck. "I can't describe it. It feels so amazing. It's like you're never alone. You always have someone with you."

"I wish I could understand that feeling."

"No you don't!" Stiles yells from upstairs.

Scott shakes his head and laughs. "Stop listening to our conversation, you creeper!"

"He's been around Derek for too long." Allison laughs.

"We're not creepers!" Derek yells back at them.

Scott and Allison break into giggles. They truly love the pack and don't mind that privacy is severely lacking (most of the time). They get distracted when Allison feels a kick. She moves Scott's hand to the right spot and hopes that he can feel it, too. She knows he feels it when he grins at her and gives her a big kiss.

"So, Jackson, when are we going to have a pup of our own?" Lydia seems hopeful.

Jackson looks at her with a confused expression on his face. "You want kids?"

"Yeah. Why would you think I wouldn't?"

"Your career. Your tight, perfect little body. Your fashion sense."

Lydia rolls her eyes. "Ok, one, college professors are allowed to get pregnant. Two, my body would be amazing anyway. I'd be one of those girls that everybody thinks looks adorable while expecting. And three, they make acceptable looking maternity clothes these days, and if I couldn't find any, I'd just design my own."

Jackson nods. "Ok, then. I guess we can start trying."

"Do you want kids?" Lydia thought that Jackson would be dying to have kids. He's not nearly as self-absorbed as he was in high school. She thought he'd want to have a little Whittemore running around, growing up and joining the lacrosse team, being the center of attention, and dating all the popular girls.

"Yeah, I do. I just… We're werewolves, Lyds. There are always going to be people after us, hunting us… Look at what happened to Stiles. If it would have been you instead…"

"Nothing's going to happen to me. And if someone even tried, you'd be there to save me. You always are."

The couple kisses and starts working on building a family of their own.


	18. The Party

The baby shower is a few weeks earlier this time. Lydia remembers that Stiles was a little early his first time around, and this time he looks like he might explode at any minute. Better safe than sorry.

The party is perfect. The theme is "A Growing Pack" and everything is decorated like a garden. The cupcakes are in terra cotta pots and are iced to resemble different kinds of vegetables and flowers. Everything is decorated beautifully. Lydia has definitely outdone herself this time.

Everyone is there. And yeah, baby showers are usually just for women, but, when only a few people know that you're all actually a pack of werewolves, the guest list is limited. Allison smiles and hurries over to her father when he walks through the door. These last few months have been good ones for them. They have mended their relationship and everything is going great.

The group plays games after they eat. Who knew candy bars could look so disgusting when they are melted and smashed into diapers. Another game involves guessing the circumference of their bellies and Stiles is highly insulted at some of the guesses… until they measure and he is actually larger than any of them thought.

They open all the gifts with the excitement of four year olds. Mr. and Mrs. Stilinski went a little overboard on gifts for Stiles. Mysteriously, there were things to match some of the items Stiles bought online and had delivered to his dad's house. The Sheriff had promised he hadn't been looking inside of the boxes that kept piling up on his doorstep, but clearly he had.

Argent bought quite a few gifts for his daughter as well. Even though their relationship has been improving, a few extra gifts might not hurt. He told her to wait and open one of the boxes later. When she does open it, she sees that it contains a miniature bow with arrows and a sealed envelope. She cries when she reads the handwritten letter from her mother. Even though Allison was only seventeen when she died, she had already picked out this gift for her future grandchild.

At the end of the evening, neither of the expecting wolves has gone into labor, so Lydia is very relieved. She loves planning and hosting parties, especially when there are no additional surprises thrown in. Both Allison and Stiles hug her and thank her for throwing such an amazing party. Everyone has had a great time, but now the party is over. Before she goes to bed, Lydia can't help herself and begins to plan her own baby shower. It won't be for quite a while, but since it is for her own child, it will be her best party yet.


	19. In Debt

Pregnancy has really affected Stiles this time around. His body wasn't meant to carry one baby, let alone two. His feet hurt, his back hurts, everything hurts. But Stiles knows how lucky he is, so he doesn't complain… most of the time. Lying on his side, he groans as Derek massages his lower back.

"Feel good?" Derek questions.

"Mmhum, awesome," Stiles smirks. He rolls over on his back. His gorgeous brown eyes look up at his mate's face. Derek leans in and kisses him. It is passionate but too brief for Stiles' liking. He whines and pulls Derek closer.

Derek moves on top of Stiles, awkwardly leaving enough room between them for his mate's enlarged belly. Stiles smiles between kisses. They haven't done this for a while. Derek strips off his shirt as they start to really get into it. He moves his hands down Stiles' flushed body but stops when he feels gentle kicking against his palm.

He sighs and pulls away from his husband, sitting up on the bed.

"You can't be serious!" Stiles groans and raises his arms up, pressing the heels of his hands into his eyes.

"I can't. It's like they're watching us. They're right there." He points at Stiles' stomach. "I can't do it with them in the same room."

"So, if we do it, like, in the doorway…" Derek just rolls his eyes. "What! They wouldn't technically be in the same room! Fine. Just know that after all this is over, you owe me."


	20. Contractions

Even though it's about twelve thirty in the afternoon, Derek is napping on the couch. He didn't get much sleep last night. His mate spent the night whimpering and tossing and turning. No matter what Stiles did, the twins wouldn't stop kicking. He sat up. He lay down. He walked around the whole house. Nothing helped.

Derek is startled awake by Stiles frantically shaking him. Sitting up, he can see the pained look on his husband's face.

"Derek, I think we need to go to Deaton's." He isn't crying, but his whole body shakes as if he is sobbing.

"What's wrong?!" Derek is on his feet in an instant. He helps hold Stiles upright.

"It's time, and I'm not changing."

"What? Why not?"

Stiles rolls his eyes. "If I knew that, I wouldn't need to go to Deaton. I should have changed by now, I can feel it."

Derek quickly gets him to the car and speeds toward the vet's office. His head snaps up when he hears a cop car behind them. Their tires make a very distinct sound on the pavement. He slows down ever so slightly.

"What… what are you doing? Please, Derek, hurry."

"There's a cop behind us."

"It's just my dad; I texted him." Stiles raises himself up in the seat. "Oh that is so gross…"

"What?" Derek turns toward Stiles, panicked.

"Um, I think my water just broke." Stiles pulls his hand away from his pants.

"On my seat?!"

"You're seriously more worried about your seat than you are about your husband? What is wrong with you?" Stiles gapes at Derek.

Derek can see that his mate's face is red and he is sweating profusely. "Stiles, I'm worried about you I just…"

"Oww," Stiles interrupts him. "It's getting worse. I should be wolfed out by now."

"We're almost there. You'll be fine."

"Ouch. I need to move." He tries to crawl around in the front of the car, kicking Derek and hitting into everything. "Why is this car so small?!"

"Stiles, calm down. Stop moving."

"I can't stop moving, Derek. I'm giving birth and, if you haven't noticed, the parts I need – don't got 'em! You have no idea what this feels like. I don't know why I'm always the one to get pregnant. Next time, it better be you." Another contraction hits, and Stiles is unable to speak or fidget until it passes. "Oh my gosh, Derek, please go faster."

Derek continues driving to the vet's office. He nervously looks over at his mate every other second. "You okay?"

"No, Der. I'm not okay… Geeze, this hurts. What's that breathing thing ladies do?"

"Lamaze breathing?"

"I don't mean what's it called; I mean how do you do it?" Stiles groans again as a contraction hits. "Is it 'he he who he he'? Or is it 'who who he ha who'?"

"How should I know? You're the one who has been reading all those books with Allison. You should know."

"Oh it doesn't matter. I'll make up my own."

After what seems like an hour they pull up at the back entrance to the clinic. The Sheriff jumps out of his car, and he and Derek help Stiles inside. Scott is the first to see them.

"What's wrong?!"

"He's not changing," Derek huffs.

Deaton, ever calm, starts pulling herbs out of his cabinets. "Here, swallow this." He hands Stiles a gooey concoction. Stiles gags but eventually gets it down. He continues to be in pain for a minute, but slowly starts to calm down.

"Is it working?" Scott asks, worried about his friend.

Stiles nods his head as he wobbles to the wall and slides down to the floor. Deaton ushers the men out of the room. Derek kneels down and kisses Stiles.

"Der, please go." His eyes begin to burn with color. "I can't control it. Just go. I'll be fine."

Deaton puts a hand on Derek's shoulder, and he finally goes into the other room. From behind the closed door, they can't see anything, but they can hear claws scratching against the tile, whimpers, and the occasional growl. Derek is clearly agitated. Mr. Stilinski sits close to him. Slowly, the rest of the pack comes into the clinic and waits for their new members to enter the world. They hear little whines first. Then, the whines morph easily into cries. Derek jumps up and bursts into the room. Deaton is cleaning the twins up while Stiles is passed out on the floor. The vet motions for Derek to check on him. He kneels down and gently shakes him.

"Stiles. Come on, babe, wake up." His mate groans and slowly opens his eyes. "Are you okay?"

"M' tired." Stiles lets his eyes fall closed again.

"Deaton, he feels really hot."

"It's a side effect of the herbs I gave him. Don't worry; the fever will come down soon. Get him dressed, then you can see your boys."

Stiles wakes up again as Derek moves him around. Because his stomach is completely flat again, his shirt hangs on him loosely. "Are they okay?"

"They're fine. I haven't seen them yet because I'm stuck messing with you, but they're fine."

Stiles weakly grins at him. "Always such a sourwolf."


	21. Birth- part two

When Allison goes into labor, the pack takes her to the hospital like normal people do. Stiles is a little bit jealous that it wasn't so simple for him. He stays at home with the twins because he doesn't want them exposed to all the hospital germs.

Little Nathan and Logan are almost three weeks old already. Boy, are they a handful. They're still young, but they're in trouble all the time. It seems like they love to tease each other and make each other mad. Nathan is the spitting image of Derek and acts exactly like him, too. Stiles thinks it's hilarious that what he calls Derek's 'I'm the alpha' face is the one that Nathan uses when he is filling his diaper. Derek didn't find it nearly as funny. Logan looks like a mix of Derek and Stiles, but his personality is one hundred percent Stilinski.

Stiles puts them down for a nap and begins to pace up and down the hallway. He chews on his thumbnail as he waits for news about Allison. It's nerve-wracking. He just wants to know something already. The pack has been gone for close to two hours now. Not hearing anything is making him very anxious.

Finally his phone rings and he rushes to grab it before the sound wakes his sons. His hands shake as he opens it and puts it to his ear.

"Hello? Is she okay? Did she have it?" Stiles doesn't even know who he's talking to but he rattles off questions anyway.

It turns out to be Scott. "Yes and yes. It's amazing, Stiles. She's perfect. She's so beautiful, just like Allison. I… I can't believe it. It's just… so amazing."

"What's her name?" Stiles has been dying to know ever since Allison told him that they had the name picked out.

"Kierstan. Kierstan Elizabeth."

"Aww… Dude, you have to send me a picture. I want to see her. I wish I was there."

"Derek's already on his way back, so you can come up when he gets there."

"Ok. I'll see you as soon as I can get there." Stiles is already bouncing and ready to go.

"I'll be waiting."

"Send me a picture anyway."

As soon as Derek steps on the porch, Stiles is out the door. "They're taking naps," he rushes out before kissing his husband and running to his Jeep.

He doesn't speed to get to the hospital, but he doesn't dawdle either. The elderly receptionist is absolutely no help in finding the pack. She gives him a room number on the Oncology floor, but he thinks she's sweet so he doesn't get mad at her. He just uses his nifty werewolf senses to find the right room.

Walking past his thirty-seventh waiting room, he finds the pack. Scott is out there, so he goes to him first. The best friends turned brothers hug each other, and Stiles congratulates him. Scott is all smiles as he leads Stiles to the nursery viewing area. He points out which one is Kierstan even though Stiles could already tell which one was pack.

"She's beautiful, man." Stiles grins at him.

"I know… I knew that it would feel amazing to be a dad, but this is… I can't explain it." Scott presses his forehead against the glass so he can be as close to Kierstan as possible.

"It's the best feeling in the world." Stiles thinks back to how he felt the first time he realized he was a dad. "Come on. I want to see Allison, too." They walk down the hallway shoulder to shoulder, laughing and enjoying how amazing life is.


	22. This ringing in my ears

Stiles pulls his pillow out from under him and forces it down on his head. His groan is muffled but still audible.

"Derek, it's your turn." He can hear his mate whine, and he smiles.

"No, it isn't." Derek pushes at Stiles' shoulder. "Plus, both of them are crying. We'll each take one."

"Fine." Stiles rolls out of bed and pulls on a shirt. Before either of them is out of the room, a third wail pierces the night air. Stiles grins despite himself as he hears Allison force Scott to take care of it.

"I think I'm gonna die," Scott moans tiredly as he pads out into the hallway and into his daughter's room. "Kierstan, baby, calm down. Are you hungry? Please tell me that's it…"

The alphas continue into the twins' room and turn on a dim light. Derek takes Logan, and Stiles takes Nathan.

"Shhh, you're okay. You're okay." Derek soothes as he starts to bounce his little boy up and down.

Stiles tries to calm his pup down by rocking him back to sleep. The rocking slowly puts both of them to sleep. Once Derek gets Logan back in the crib, he slowly raises Nathan out of Stiles' arms and puts him by his brother. He gently shakes Stiles' arm, but he is too exhausted to wake up. Derek grabs a blanket and throws it over him. Going back to the bedroom, he passes by Kierstan's room. He chuckles as he sees that Scott is passed out on the floor by the crib.

He enters the room as quietly as possible. He nudges his beta with his foot.

"No, it's your turn…" Scott whines in his sleep.

"Scott, go to bed. She's asleep."

Scott slowly rises up and looks around. He yawns and drags himself back into his room and lies down beside his wife. Derek tromps back to bed and flops down. He's asleep in an instant. Too bad he doesn't get to stay that way for long.


	23. Time flies (and now our story ends)

The Hale house is filled with activity as everyone gets ready. Laura helps her daddy get her brothers ready while Derek sets up the camera. He wants to get the perfect shot, so he takes his time focusing the camera on the front of the house.

Scott and Allison keep Kierstan happy by bouncing her up and down on their legs. But, she won't stay this happy for long, so their alpha better hurry up. The rest of the pack slowly files in to position on the front steps.

Boyd and Erica sit down beside Isaac and his fiancée. Stiles comes out of the house with a boy in each arm. They have on matching outfits, miniature red hoodies and dark blue jeans. Their white tennis shoes are in perfect condition because Stiles has never let them wear them before. He sits down and rests his boys on his legs until Derek can take one. Laura sits beside him and lets Logan play with her finger.

Allison and Scott bring Kierstan over and position themselves on the step below Stiles. The youngest pack member looks up at her papa and blows spit bubbles at him. He looks back at her and scrunches up his nose. She giggles in that perfect little laugh she has.

"Come on guys," Derek tries to hurry them along. He doesn't have all day. The light is getting dimmer and the kids are getting fidgety. Lydia and Jackson finally come and sit down. She sits on his lap, and he rests his hand on her small baby bump. Chris Argent takes his spot behind his daughter, and the Stilinski's sit behind Stiles and Scott. The pack is finally all together, so Derek sets the timer on his beloved camera.

He runs as fast as he can toward the house. He sits down by Laura and takes Logan from Stiles, so they each have a baby in their arms. Mr. Stilinski rests one hand on Stiles shoulder and on hand on Derek's.

Everyone smiles, but Derek's smile might be the biggest of all. He can't believe how lucky he is. About eight years ago, he found himself completely alone. Now, he has a pack again and is surrounded by people whom he loves. He couldn't be happier.

The camera goes off and captures the perfect moment.

**Author's Note:**

This was originally meant to be a 3 part series, but I could probably be persuaded to write more if enough people told me they wanted a 4th part. If you want me to write more, it'll be a series of one-shots like "The Life and Times of a Werewolf Family". Send me requests of chapters you'd like to see and I'll write them.

Also, I'm writing a new Teen Wolf fanfic right now. It's completely different than this series. I thought I'd give you a little taste, so here is a little teaser…

"Stiles bends down to get a closer look at the strange substance swirling in the leaves in front of him. It moves and wisps up like smoke, but has the consistency of water. It looks grey at first but pulsates into a pale blue. His eyes become locked on it, and he finds himself reaching out to it. He tries desperately to pull back, but he can't; it's beginning to control him. He tries to call for help, but he can't. The smoky liquid coils up and feels cold against his fingertips. 'Nothing like this was in the bestiary,' Stiles thinks just before his mind goes blank and his eyes burn gold." …

Whataya think?


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